Cannes Classics review - STEVE MCQUEEN: THE MAN AND LE MANS by John McKenna and Gabriel Clarke

The king of cool and his vanity project. Gabriel Clarke and John McKenna presented their documentary Steve McQueen: The Man and Le Mans in the Cannes Classics section of the 68th Cannes Film Festival.

 

The 1971 film Le Mans is a feature that actor and undisputed king of cool of the time brought to life, and fought hard to have remain as his own personal vision. This vision did not coincide with any form of conventional sports drama, but rather aimed to capture the absolute authenticity of motorsports by racing for real and stripping dramatic depth top its bare essentials. 

 

Aside from it receiving mixed reviews upon release, it was a tumoltuous shoot, and particularly intense for McQueen himself. His constant fights with financiers, his abrupt break up with his wife, his strained work relations with John Sturges. These are only some of the films that are revealed in this film, a retrospective making of documentary that feels as much a biographical documentary about an actor as a racind car driver.

 

This is precisely why Steve McQueen: The Man and Le Mans is so fascinating. It reveals the many identities of one of the most iconic Hollywood stars of all time with great insight. This is not only achieved through interviews with people who were directly involved with the making of Le Mans, but also through archive footage - some of which is seen and heard for the first time. Out of all this, the contributions by Steve's son Chad, who seems to have a natural charisma about him, stands out, particularly because he shows a blatant admiration for his father that is very touching.

 

Another thing that sets this documentary aside from the average biographical documentary is this almost musical rhythm that accentuates the nostalgic vibe of the piece. It is able to show, more or less in chronological order, the resulting tension of the obsession and passion of the succession of events that unfolds on the screen with a gripping immediacy. But it also shows sensibility in its use of silent close ups of the friends and family the filmmakers interview, shots of the nature surrounding the racing circuit of Le Mans, and other elements that that enhance the film's romanticism and air of nostalgia with a sympathetic and humanising look not at Steve McQueen the actor, but Steve McQueen the man with a vision, a passion and an obsession as well as a commitment a certain envoronment for which he had an enormous admiration.